Joyce M. Roché

As a trailblazer in the corporate world for 25 years, Joyce Roché mentored women by encouraging them to find their voices and take bold career risks to excel.Her vision for empowered businesswomen carried over into her work on behalf of girls when in 2000, she assumed the role of President and CEO of Girls Inc., the nonprofit organization whose mission is to inspire all girls to be strong, smart, and bold.

Before joining Girls Inc., Ms. Roché served as President and Chief Operating Officer of Carson Products Company, and Vice President of Global Marketing at Avon Products, Inc. While at Avon, Ms. Roché broke new ground, becoming Avon’s first
African American female vice president, the first African American vice president of marketing, and the company’s first vice president of global marketing.

Ms. Roché has received widespread acclaim for her achievements in the business world: In 1998, Business Week selected her as one of the “Top Managers to Watch,” and in 1997 she was featured on the cover of Fortune. In 1991 and 1994 respectively, Black Enterprise named Roché one of the “21 Women of Power and Influence in Corporate America” and one of the “40 Most Powerful Black Executives.”

In 2006, Ms. Roché received the Legacy Award during Black Enterprise magazine’s “Women of Power Summit,” and in 2007, she received the Distinguished Alumna Award from Columbia University Women in Business.

Ms. Roché recently published a book, called The Empress Has No Clothes…Conquering self-doubt to embrace Success (Berrett-Koehler, 2013), a deeply personal memoir in which Ms. Roché shares her lifelong struggle with the imposter syndrome and offers advice and coping strategies based on her own experiences and those of other high-achieving leaders who have suffered from it.

Ms. Roché is a graduate of Dillard University in New Orleans and holds an MBA from Columbia University. She has successfully completed Stanford University’s Senior Executive Program and holds honorary doctorate degrees from Dillard University and
North Adams State College. She currently sits on the Board of Directors of AT&T Inc., Macy’s Inc., Tupperware Brands Corporation, Dr. Pepper Snapple Group Inc., and the Association of Governing Boards. She is the chair of the Board of Trustees for Dillard University and has previously served on the boards of Anheuser-Busch Companies, May Department Stores, Girls Inc., and The National Underground Railroad Freedom Center.